7
Protecting and
preserving our
resources
Protecting Our Natural Resources
Protects Our Water Supply
Water is our lifeline, so it is essential to invest in the
ongoing maintenance, protection, and restoration of our
capital and natural assets, including our watershed lands.
Our investments foster the conservation of 1.7 million
acres. The protection of these natural assets helps us
maintain the high quality of our drinking water and
avoid costly filtration of the Hetch Hetchy supply.
Protection and restoration of our watersheds also help
support greater water supply reliability for our customers
while protecting both native and threatened species.
For the first time in almost 100 years, a bald eagle pair
successfully raised fledglings on our Peninsula Watershed.
Diversifying Our Water Supply
San Francisco relies on water from the Sierra and local
watersheds. As good stewards of our water resources, we
are developing more ways to make the best use of our water,
including access to local groundwater, recycled water, and
other sources such as transfers and desalination, which
can supplement our precious water supply and provide
San Franciscans with water in an emergency.
Between 2005 and 2012, our retail water conservation
program achieved an estimated 2.6 million gallons per
day of water savings. In 2012-13, we provided over 9,000
customer rebates for the replacement of inefficient plumbing
fixtures with high-efficiency models, including toilets,
urinals, and clothes washing machines. We distributed
more than 23,000 high-efficiency plumbing devices to
residential, commercial and municipal properties. We also
provided 2,194 free high-efficiency toilet installations to
176 low-income households and multi-family affordable
housing developments.
As of October 2012, we completed the Harding Park
Recycled Water Project, providing recycled water to
irrigate 163 acres of greens. Looking ahead, we continue
to explore and develop more ways to make the best use
of our water.
Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Power Resources
Our Power Enterprise offers an array of energy
efficiency, renewable energy and green building
programs for our customers.
8
Resource Reuse –
Turning Waste into Energy
Methane gas produced during the wastewater
treatment process at our Southeast Water Pollution
Control Plant can be converted to electricity, meeting
up to 40% of the plant’s energy needs. Even more
energy will be produced when we upgrade our old
biosolids digester facilities as part of the Sewer
System Improvement Program.
Our biofuel program, SFGreasecycle, generates
renewable biofuel, a low carbon alternative to
petroleum diesel, from fats, oils and grease (FOG)
collected throughout the City. FOG has traditionally
caused clogging and malfunction in the sewer
collection system, costing the City millions of
dollars each year.
To date, more than 1 million gallons of used
cooking oil have been collected from seven residential
drop-off points and over 1,000 City restaurants. After
removal of impurities (food scraps and water) the
grease is converted into biodiesel. San Francisco’s
MUNI bus fleet uses a 20% biodiesel blend, displacing
over 250,000 gallons of petroleum diesel each year.
Since 2004, we have installed 7.5 megawatts of
municipal solar installations on top of San Francisco
civic buildings. New solar installations reduce
greenhouse gas emissions and allow us to meet
new customer demand. This year we completed
the Alvarado Elementary School Solar Array
installation, the City’s 14th municipal solar array
and first atop a public school.
While we have been hard at work generating new
sources of energy, we’re also maximizing the efficiency
of our existing customer base. We have completed
more than 175 energy efficiency projects in public
buildings in the last ten years. Those upgrades are
saving the City over $5 million each year in energy
costs and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Increased energy efficiency requires study and analysis.
In October 2012, we unveiled detailed energy usage
information for more than 300 municipal buildings
in our first Energy Benchmarking Report. This report
identified a 3.8% reduction of energy use in these
buildings since 2010. This is equivalent to approximately
$1 million in energy savings in 2011 over the previous year.
Of the 30 buildings that were eligible for energy ratings from
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 75% performed
equal to or better than the national average for similar
buildings, and 11 of those buildings performed in the top
25% nationwide – the threshold for the ENERGY STAR label.
SFGreasecycle uses FOG to fuel our City vehicles
As the fire slowed, our staff teamed with Yosemite
National Park and Stanislaus National Forest staff
to assess fire impacts and recovery needs on
federal lands.
Impacts from the Rim Fire will be felt for
generations as we study the effects of wildland
fires within our watersheds and the areas around
our facilities.
Rim Fire
Annual Report for the Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 2013